Samui festivals: Sart

Koh Samui Culture | Religious Festivals of Koh Samui

One of the many festivals of Samui Island is the Sart Festival which is celebrated throughout Thailand. This is a festival that is considered to be a memorial day of Thailand where the dead are remembered and offered prayers. These prayers are merged with Buddhist rituals and merit making.

Thais of Samui pay respect to their elders during Sart festival

The basis of the Sart Festival is that since Buddhists believe that death is part of a cycle of life, life and death are united. This is why Thais believe it is the virtues of their ancestors that have made them who they are today. It is during the Sart Festival that Thais then pay special respect to their ancestors.

To the Thais, Sart Festival is a very special occasion where the living can show their respect for their deceased relatives by meriting them during Sart Festival. This Sart Festival is not only observed in Thailand and other religious festivals; it is also observed in many Thai temples found abroad.

Some communities of Samui celebrate Sart with an annual boat race

There are some local communities in Thailand, like the people in the city of Nakhon Nayok who celebrate Sart Festival with an annual longboat or long tailed boat races and other things like Thai dance, entertainment fairs, food fairs and Thai music. Basically, the Sart Festival was a Brahministic festival celebrated by Indians. Today it is celebrated in Thai temples and Buddhist wats.

The Krayasart is a special dish of Sart festival, Samui

The sweet dish, Krayasart is a specialty dish prepared on Sart Festival. It is made from rice, sesame seeds, peanuts and sugar or honey which are boiled to form a sticky paste and then wrapped in a banana leaf. This dish is offered to monks in temples and relatives, friends and neighbors on Sart Festival as a sign of respect. This dish was to be prepared by all families in the past; today it is available in most Thai markets and supermarkets.